the authorities repress the spread of the ‘Church of Jesus’

Local police say the group is “evil” and is operating in various locations without consent. The Government Committee for Religious Affairs has never recognized the sect that appeared five years ago, created by a member of the Hmong ethnic group from Laos.

Hanoi () – The Vietnamese authorities are trying to suppress a religious sect that is increasingly popular in the northern provinces of the country, the “Church of Jesus”, which according to the Vietnamese police is operating in many localities without having the required permit. .

All religious groups in Vietnam must have government approval in order not to be banned, but the Government Religious Affairs Committee has never recognized the Jesus Church as a religious organization.

The group was founded five years ago by a man who calls himself David Her but whose real name is Ho Cha Sung. According to local police, Her is a member of the Hmong ethnic group originally from Xiangkhoang province in Laos, but currently lives in California.

Her identifies himself as a messenger of Jesus and claims that He will return to protect the Hmong people. He also claims that God gave the land to the Hmong people, but since they were not united, his territory was divided among other ethnic groups. He exhorts the faithful to return to Laos to create a state.

The sect is concentrated in the provinces of Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Son La, Lao Cai, Yen Bai and Thanh Hoa, in the north of the country. The Ministry of Public Security called it an “evil religion” and expressed concern about its rapid growth among the Hmong. Most of the community converted to Christianity in the 20th and 21st centuries.

According to local police in Hai Phong, about 100 Hmong people live in the city. Not all would be followers of the Church of Jesus, but they have been warned not to join the group.

In April, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (Uscirf) presented a proposal for Vietnam to be included again in the list of countries of particular concern because they do not respect religious freedom, stating that the government continues to persecute communities independent religious.